SoftBank will be replacing its Huawei hardware in its 4G network infrastructure over the next few years and using equipment from Ericsson and Nokia instead, according to Japan’s Nikkei Asian Review. It is also expected to place orders with the two European companies for its 5G networks, the Nikkei reported.
Sprint’s prospective $26 billion merger with Deutsche Telekom-owned T-Mobile U.S., meanwhile, was approved by the U.S. government on Monday after SoftBank and the German company said they would stop using Huawei’s equipment, Reuters reported.
The listing on the Tokyo Stock Exchange also comes as Son, one of the tech world’s most powerful people, makes waves with his $100 billion Vision Fund, and marks the transformation of the group from a mobile carrier to a global investment fund.
“He’s trying to court a new type of investor that actually shares his vision in the outlook for (Internet of Things technology), for robotics and most importantly artificial intelligence,” Chris Lane, senior researcher at Sanford C. Bermstein, said Wednesday on CNBC’s “Squawk Box” before trading began.
“So this is part of that transformation,” Lane said. “I think it’s a fairly major step in that transformation.”
The fund was established in October 2016 and is aimed at boosting promising businesses in the technology sector.
“IPO proceeds will supplement the holding company’s liquidity, although a large part of proceeds to SoftBank may eventually be used to fund its remaining capital commitments to the SoftBank Vision Fund (SVF), which continues to invest in internet and emerging technology businesses,” Moody’s Investors Service said in a report last month.
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